49ers Speared by Texans Defense in Road Loss

Week 8 - Entering Sunday's meeting between the visiting (5-2) San Francisco 49ers and (2-4) Houston Texans, both teams were coming off completely different games than one another. For San Francisco, a 20-10 win at home against the Falcons in which the 49ers were in control virtually all game long and had their way on the ground. As for Houston, a 27-19 loss on the road in Seattle where they were held in check all night long on the ground and were just 2 of 13 on third down. Fast-forward to Sunday and you'd have a total reversal of roles as the Texans began 3-for-5 on third down to start before finishing 9-for-16 despite being without one of their best players in receiver Nico Collins who sat out with a concussion. After totaling a season-high 174 yards of rushing just a week earlier, the 49ers failed to tally 50 yards on the ground against Houston and didn't convert a single first down until the final minute of the first half. In what would be just the sixth matchup all-time between these two franchises, the rare head-to-head meeting would allow 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan to face off against his former defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans for the first time since Ryans was hired to coach the Texans back in 2023 after spending six seasons on Shanahan's 49ers staff. 

Opening the game on defense, the 49ers struggled to get off the field as Houston embarked on a 16-play drive that lasted 9-minutes and 39-seconds, their most plays and longest drive of the season. Although the Texans would be held to a field goal, it would be the first points allowed on an opening-drive by the San Francisco defense this season. Making matters worse, the Niners were held to a three and out punt on each of their first three possessions which did no favors for San Francisco's tiring defense. With a minute remaining in the first half, the 49ers found themselves trailing 16-0 before they received a spark from one of the most unlikeliest of sources. While special-teams usually costs the 49ers on a nearly weekly basis, on Sunday, it would help them ignite a rally to close out the first half. With backup running back Brian Robinson Jr. back to return kicks, his 46-yard kick return to midfield would breathe life into the Niners. After tacking on a 15-yard facemask penalty during the return, the 49ers would be in business. A few plays later they would strike pay dirt. With the NFL celebrating National Tight-Ends Day on Sunday, the founding father of the unofficial holiday would put his stamp on the game as George Kittle hauled in a circus catch in the end zone between two Houston defenders to put his team on the board. 

With Houston electing to pass the ball instead of running the clock in the final 17-seconds of the first half, Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud launched a ball down field into the hands of 49ers cornerback Deommodore Lenoir who hauled in the first interception of the season for the San Francisco defense. The interception would end the first half and more importantly halted the Niners' drought of 14 consecutive games without an interception, the longest such drought in NFL history. Lenoir's interception would be a microcosm of how the rest of the half went for the 49er defense as the Texans had piled up 299 yards of total offense by halftime, more yards than they had in total in four of their first six games. Even then, San Francisco wouldn't be completely out of the game just yet. Receiving the second half kickoff, the Niners would have a chance to inch even closer on the scoreboard, but another three and out punt would put an end to any momentum San Francisco had captured. Adding insult to injury, Stroud and the Texans marched 94-yards down the field on their ensuing possession before a 30-yard touchdown reception from receiver Xavier Hutchinson. 

The Niners' second possession of the second half would go much better than their first as a 17-play, 76-yard drive that took over 7-minutes in gametime ended with another touchdown pass from quarterback Mac Jones to a 49ers tight-end, this time Jake Tonges the recipient. With a successful two-point conversion to receiver Demarcus Robinson, the 49ers climbed back into the game trailing by only eight. Unfortunately, the 49er defense would not force a single Texans punt until the final five minutes of the fourth quarter. And with Houston adding a field goal to open the fourth, things would become a bit more difficult as the 49ers attempted to stage a late game comeback while now trailing by two-scores. With Jones marching his team down the field again, a deep shot into the end zone intended for Jauan Jennings would be intercepted, spoiling a last-ditch effort by San Francisco. 

After rushing for a season-high 129 yards a week earlier, 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey who was coming off NFC Ground Player of the Week honors for his performance against the Atlanta Falcons, was held to just 25 yards rushing on 8 attempts and ended the first half with a career-low 8 yards. Equally as disappointing was San Francisco's defensive-line which failed to record a single sack on Sunday. With defensive-end Bryce Huff ruled out for the game with a hamstring injury and expected to miss a few weeks, the Niners' laundry-list of injuries showed its ill-effects more than ever in the loss. Poor tackling and an inability to force punts proved to be costly for defensive coordinator Robert Saleh who did what he could with the skeleton crew of players he had at his disposal. The 26-15 final would be Houston's first win over the 49ers since Week 7 of the 2009 season and only their second win against San Francisco in six tries. Finishing with 193 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception on the day, 49ers QB Mac Jones was bested by his Houston counterpart C.J. Stroud who threw for a season-high 318 yards and 2 touchdowns, with his only blemish being the one interception just before halftime. A week after failing to record a single reception, 49ers tight-end George Kittle got back on track with 4 receptions for 43 yards and a touchdown, trailing Jauan Jennings (4 receptions, 45 yards) and Kendrick Bourne (3 receptions, 44 yards) in receiving. 

Week 9 Preview: While the (5-3) 49ers are clearly head and shoulders above the rest of the league in the injury department, the (2-6) New York Giants have also had a rough go within the last few weeks as they watched two of their best players and two of the game's brightest young talents going down for the season due to injury in receiver Malik Nabers (knee) and running back Cam Skattebo (ankle, leg). Coupled with a young talented rookie quarterback in Jaxson Dart, the Giants appeared to be headed in the right direction before being snakebitten by the injury bug. But that won't stop the 25th overall pick in last April's Draft from attempting to pull off the upset at home over the visiting Niners when the two teams meet in Week 9. With the rest of the NFC Western Division on a Bye in Week 8, the 49ers lost ground in the division by falling to 5-3 on the year, as the Rams and Seahawks remain tied at 5-2. San Francisco will try to get back on track and keep pace against their division foes with a win on Sunday against a Giants team that has allowed 33+ points in back-to-back games and 26+ games in 3 of their last four. New York's defense also gave up 100+ rushing yards to not one but two Eagles running backs a week ago. San Francisco's tandem of Christian McCaffrey and Brian Robinson Jr. will attempt to repeat that feat on Sunday. 

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Niners Ride McCaffrey to Victory over Falcons

Week 7 - Returning home to Levi's Stadium after a brief two-game road trip, the (4-2) San Francisco 49ers would look to shake off their first road loss of the season while playing host to the upstart (3-2) Atlanta Falcons in primetime on Sunday Night Football. After finishing with an 8-9 record a season ago, second-year head coach Raheem Morris has the Falcons playing a much better brand of football so far this season as the team entered Sunday night's game coming off a pair of impressive wins over the Washington Commanders and Buffalo Bills, two teams that made it to their respective conference championship a season ago. Led by a red-hot running back in Bijan Robinson who tallied 170 rushing yards and a touchdown a week earlier, the head-to-head matchup against San Francisco's Christian McCaffrey would be one of the main storylines entering the game. Having trained with each other in the offseason, Sunday would be the first time both players would step on the same playing field in a game. 

Another storyline on the 49ers' side would be how the team would respond defensively without their leader and heartbeat in All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner who was officially added to the team's Injured Reserve list earlier in the day after he suffered a broken and dislocated ankle a week ago. While no player would be able to step in and replicate the type of impact Fred Warner is capable of making, second-year linebacker Tatum Bethune made a good first impression in his first career start. When things were all said and done, Bethune tallied 10 total tackles setting a new career-high, including one tackle for loss. Needing to play inspired ball on defense, Bethune was one of several 49er players able to do just that as both he and fellow linebacker Dee Winters showed up to Levi's Stadium wearing a Fred Warner jersey. While Warner was unable to suit up with his squad, he made his presence very known by showing support to his 49er teammates on the field before the game while riding around on a mobility scooter and hugging them on their way into the locker room after the game. Warner was also shown multiple times on the Levi's Stadium jumbotron during the game which was sure to fire up the fans. 

In what's been a rough season for Kyle Shanahan's 49ers on the injury front, the team finally received some good news regarding tight-end George Kittle as the All-Pro returned to the field on Sunday. In his first game back in action since leaving in the first half of Week 1, Kittle failed to log a single reception in the entire game on two targets, but he still made his presence felt as his blocking prowess played a major role in why the running game was finally able to have some success. Behind Kittle's stellar blocking, running back Christian McCaffrey was able to surpass his season-high in rushing yards (69) by halftime. McCaffrey would nearly double that mark on Sunday night by finishing with 129 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground, his most rushing yards in a game since Week 16 2023 and his seventh consecutive game with over 100 scrimmage yards. Sunday's game would also be McCaffrey's seventh career game with 100+ rushing yards and 70+ receiving yards, breaking a tie with Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk and Priest Holmes for the most in NFL history. CMC would also become the first player in NFL history with 50+ rush yards and 50+ receiving yards in 6 of his team's first 7 games. 

But before the 49ers took control of the ballgame on the ground and imposed their will in the trenches, things got off to a less-than-ideal start. While San Francisco was able to hold Atlanta's offense to a three and out punt on the game's opening-drive, the Falcons did manage to strike first with a field goal on their second possession and had an opportunity to add on more as San Francisco saw their second drive that was trending in the right direction go up in flames when quarterback Mac Jones had his pass intended for Jauan Jennings tipped into the air and intercepted. Their third possession would be a charm, however, as San Francisco found the end zone on McCaffrey's first of two touchdowns. The team would tack on a field goal after forcing Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. to fumble the ball following a Bryce Huff strip-sack, giving the Niners a 10-3 advantage. Atlanta nearly got three-points back on their end just before the half following a big gain on a 38-yard completion to receiver Darnell Mooney down the sideline, but a key intentional-grounding penalty one play later would result in a pivotal 10-second runoff that ended the half and prevented the Falcons from even attempting a field goal try.  

With San Francisco opening the second half in possession of the ball, they would add another Eddy Pineiro field goal to increase their lead to 13-3. After holding the Falcons offense to their second-fewest rushing yards in a half this season thru the first two quarters, Atlanta would take advantage of a big 45-yard return on the ensuing kickoff. Taking over near midfield, Falcons running back Bijan Robinson who had been held in check up to this point began to finally put his stamp on the game, catching a screen-pass and scoring on a 10-yard touchdown to make it a 13-10 ballgame. Atlanta would have a chance to take the lead or at least tie the game near the midway point of the fourth quarter, but coach Morris' decision to bypass a game-tying field goal attempt and instead go for it on 4th and 1 at the San Francisco 35 yard line would come back to haunt him as cornerback Chase Lucas read the play perfectly and caused a broken pass intended for Drake London, resulting in a pivotal turnover on downs. With rookie cornerback Upton Stout listed as a gametime-decision, his injured ankle would keep him sidelined for the game which led to Lucas being called upon to fill in. And fill in he did, making several key plays in coverage that helped keep London (4 receptions, 42 yards) and company at bay. 

Taking advantage of Atlanta's unsuccessful gamble, the 49ers marched 59-yards on 15-plays in just under 6-minutes, capping off the big drive with McCaffrey's second touchdown of the night from 4-yards out. Penix Jr. and the Falcons offense would give it one final shot at a last-ditch comeback with under 2:30 remaining in regulation, but another turnover on downs would seal the Niners' 20-10 victory. McCaffrey would lead both teams in rushing (129) and receiving (72), helping San Francisco put up their highest total in rush yards (174) since 2024 Week 8 vs the Dallas Cowboys. With the win, quarterback Mac Jones earned an extra $400K in incentives by winning four games as the 49ers' starting QB, improving his record to 4-1 as the team's starter. Jones would have his most pedestrian game yet on the season by throwing for only 152 yards, no touchdowns and 1 interception, but still found a way to help his team get the win. Jones' counterpart Michael Penix Jr. threw for 241 yards and 1 touchdown but did suffer the big fumble before the half. Atlanta running back Bijan Robinson was held to just 40-yards on the ground on 14 carries, but did have a strong night receiving with 52 yards and a touchdown on 6 receptions. Niners kicker Eddy Pineiro logged another strong outing in the win by going 2-for-2 on field goals from 55 and 43 yards, setting a San Francisco franchise record for consecutive field goals made to start a season with 17. 

Week 8 Preview: The (5-2) 49ers will head back on the road to pay a visit to the Lone Star State where they will face off against the (2-4) Houston Texans and head coach DeMeco Ryans who served two seasons under Kyle Shanahan as defensive coordinator of the 49ers from 2021-22. Coming off a 27-19 loss on the road to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football, the Texans offense had a lackluster night both on the ground with only 56 rushing yards to show for and thru the air from quarterback C.J. Stroud who took a beating and was pressured virtually all game long. Robert Saleh's 49er defense will look to replicate that same success Seattle had against this Houston group. Stroud might also be without his top target in receiver Nico Collins who had to exit Monday's game after his head hit the turf on a play that has left him in the league's concussion protocol. Putting pressure on the Niners to keep up their winning ways are the division rival Rams and Seahawks who share a three-way tie with San Francisco for the top spot in the NFC West at 5-2 on the year. 

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Another Game Another Key Injury, 49ers Lose Warner before Falling to Bucs

Week 6 - The 2025 NFL season has been a rough one for teams around the league regarding injuries as some of the game's brightest players have fallen to the injury bug in the early going. But no team in all of football has had it worse than the (4-1) San Francisco 49ers in terms of both the amount of players they've lost to injury (27) and the star power of those losses as head coach Kyle Shanahan could virtually assemble a Pro Bowl team with the laundry list of injuries his team has already suffered only five games into the season. On Sunday while taking on the (4-1) Buccaneers in Tampa Bay, the 49ers who are already without former Defensive Player of the Year Nick Bosa, lost yet another one of their defensive captains and vocal leaders and suffered without a doubt their biggest blow possible when 4-time First-Team All-Pro and 4-time Pro Bowl linebacker Fred Warner needed to be carted off the field in the game's opening quarter after being rolled up on by a teammate making a tackle. Warner entered Sunday's game needing only five tackles to surpass Hall of Famer Patrick Willis for the 49ers' franchise record and tallied only one before suffering the injury at the 7:48 mark of the first quarter. 

The magnitude of both the player and injury was quite evident as players from both teams gathered near midfield to take a knee and hold a prayer for Warner as he was attended to by medical personnel before being carted to the locker room with what was later diagnosed as a broken and dislocated ankle. It would also come as a shock given how durable Warner has been over the years having missed only 1 game out of 122 career contests. He will now miss the rest of the season with 11 games remaining. Unfortunately, even after the brutal injury, the show would have to go on as there were still more than three and a half quarters to be played. Touted as being a heavyweight matchup for the NFC's top-seed, Sunday's meeting between the 49ers and Bucs would mark the first time in NFL history that two teams would meet six weeks into the season with all of their games decided by 5-points or less. Ironically, the two teams who have only known one-score games this season would ultimately take part in a game that was decided by double-digits. 

San Francisco's defense which hadn't allowed any first quarter points all season, got off to another promising start to begin the game as quarterback Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers were held to a punt on the game's opening-drive. After a pair of runs on first and second down on the 49ers' ensuing possession, QB Mac Jones had his first pass attempt of the afternoon intercepted on a play that saw the quarterback and receiver clearly on the wrong page. A week after a career-night for 49ers receiver Kendrick Bourne, the QB-receiver duo was out of sync which allowed the Bucs to setup shop at the San Francisco 12 where they would score two plays later with a 2-yard rushing touchdown by running back Rachaad White, ending the Niner defense's scoreless first quarter streak. Jones and Bourne would redeem themselves on San Francisco's next drive as the two connected on the very next play with a 41-yard pass that helped the 49ers get on the board with a 52-yard Eddy Pineiro field goal. After exchanging punts, Jones and Bourne were back at it to open the second quarter, this time connecting on a 56-yard reception. Still seeking their first rushing touchdown of the year, Christian McCaffrey finally broke through on third down with a 1-yard score to give San Francisco a 10-7 lead. 

The 49ers' lead would be short-lived as the Bucs took advantage of Warner not being on the field and began to pick apart the 49er secondary, scoring touchdowns on three of their next four full possessions after the heart-wrenching injury took place. One of the league's leading MVP-candidates in the early going, Baker Mayfield led his team on back-to-back touchdown-scoring drives to end the first half as San Francisco was only able to answer with field goals, leading to a 20-16 halftime lead for Tampa Bay. The Niners nearly suffered another freak injury before halftime when kicker Eddy Pineiro had his foot stepped on by a teammate just after drilling the field goal that sent the team into the half. Despite trailing at the half, it would be only the second career game with 200 passing yards thru the first two quarters for 49ers QB Mac Jones. Sunday would also mark the first time in his career that he would log back-to-back 300 yard passing games as Jones threw for a season-high 347 when it was all said and done. Adding a fourth field goal by Pineiro to open the second half, Tampa Bay again did them one better by finding the end zone. One of the bigger plays that likely did the 49ers in was a pivotal 3rd and 14 that saw Mayfield avoid being sacked by two defenders before breaking another tackle and eventually lunging forward for the first down on a back-breaking 15-yard run. Instead of setting up a punt, the Bucs converted for a new set of downs and scored two plays later on a 45-yard bomb to Tez Johnson. 

After a failed two-point conversion and a missed field goal on Tampa Bay's ensuing possession, the 49ers still had a chance trailing by 8-points with just under 9-minutes to go. But with a second Mac Jones interception on the day and a turnover on downs on San Francisco's final two possessions, the 49ers would fall 30 to 19, allowing their highest point total of the season. Unable to force any turnovers of their own on defense, the 49ers' drought of consecutive games without an interception has now reached 13 games, the longest such streak in NFL history. In a game that was full of lots of negatives, the 49ers did have a few positives on Sunday including the first career sack of rookie first round pick Mykel Williams and the return of second-year safety Malik Mustapha who made his season debut after recovering from an ACL injury suffered at the end of last season. Entering the game with a career record of 0-4 against the 49ers, Baker Mayfield finally got off the schneid with the win on Sunday, improving his MVP campaign by throwing for 256 yards and 2 touchdowns in the win and sacked only once, despite losing his top target Emeka Egbuka to a hamstring injury in the first half. Elsewhere, the 49ers' offensive-line which has been problematic this season, would let quarterback Mac Jones down on Sunday as he was sacked six times on the afternoon, tying a career-high. 

49ers receiver Kendrick Bourne had another stellar day at the office Sunday, tallying a career-high 142 receiving yards for the second consecutive week, giving him back-to-back games of 100+ yards after only one such game in his previous 114 career games. Meanwhile, Bourne's teammate and fellow receiver Jauan Jennings had another rough day at the office after missing action in Week 5 due to an injury, catching only one pass for 7 yards. Jennings was called for several penalties on Sunday and even got into a shouting match on the sideline with coach Shanahan. Jennings revealed in the locker room after the game that he played through five broken ribs which would explain his poor performance. But the biggest elephant in the room after the game were the worries that surrounded Fred Warner. Team reporters described the somber 49ers locker room after the game as the most depressing they've ever felt it outside of the Super Bowl loss in overtime two seasons ago. And understandably so, the loss of Warner is sure to change the way John Lynch will approach the NFL trade deadline as they will likely need too much to now fill the voids of both Nick Bosa and Fred Warner. The truth is there is no replacing the type of player or leader that Fred Warner is and there isn't a Fred Warner-type player out there on the market. Baker Mayfield also opened up his postgame presser by sending thoughts and prayers to Warner. 

Week 7 Preview: The (4-2) 49ers will return home to Levi's Stadium in Week 7 where they will play host to the (3-2) Atlanta Falcons for a Sunday Night showdown. With head coach Kyle Shanahan having to now plan for life without the league's best linebacker with Fred Warner out, some good news should be on the horizon as the team is expected to get both George Kittle (hamstring) and Ricky Pearsall (knee) back in the lineup this week on offense. Quarterback Brock Purdy could also be eying a return soon as he recovers from a toe injury that has kept him out of all but two games this season. The 49ers will have their hands full come Sunday with Falcons running back Bijan Robinson who trained with fellow running back Christian McCaffrey in the offseason. Robinson is coming off a spectacular game in which he logged 238 scrimmage yards, the most ever in a single game in Falcons franchise history after 170 rushing yards and another 68 yards receiving. Atlanta is equally as daunting on the defensive side of things as their defense has allowed the fewest total yards per game and passing yards per game in the NFL this season.

With coach Shanahan yet to announce a starter at quarterback, regardless of who is under-center on Sunday, the 49er offensive-line will have to do a much better job of keeping their QB on their feet as Mac Jones was sacked too many times last week and will face another tough bunch to face this week coming off a four-sack night against Buffalo's Josh Allen. The Falcons are riding high with a two-game win streak after pulling off the Monday Night upset over the Bills on Monday night, 24-14.  

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49ers Win Thursday Night Thriller over Rams behind Pair of Defensive Rookies

Week 5 - After dropping both games to the rival (3-1) Los Angeles Rams a season ago, the (3-1) San Francisco 49ers were dubbed the little brother to their southern California counterparts by L.A. running back Kyren Williams. Referencing a changing of the guard after the Niners had enjoyed a dominant run in recent years over the Rams in their historic rivalry with nine straight regular season wins dating back to 2019, the Rams had suddenly found themselves winners of three straight head-to-head meetings for the first time since 1999 to 2001. With a myriad of injuries up and down the roster for the Niners and only four days removed from their first loss of the season in Week 4, San Francisco made the trip to L.A. and opened up as 8.5 point underdogs. While not exactly a surprise to some given the Rams' hot start and San Francisco's ever expanding injury list, Niners head coach Kyle Shanahan expressed to his team before kickoff that the game's high spread had pissed him off as echoed at the podium in quarterback Mac Jones' postgame presser. Not to mention homefield advantage was hardly a factor as the 49er faithful would paint the town red once again as L.A.'s SoFi Stadium, appropriately nicknamed Levi's South, resembled a 49ers home game as red and gold was adorned throughout. 

Making the start at QB for a third time this season after a brief return from Brock Purdy who would miss his third game in four weeks due to a toe injury, backup Mac Jones filled in quite nicely once again despite having his thinnest options at wide receiver yet. With a banged up receiving corps that was missing Jauan Jennings (ankle, ribs) and Ricky Pearsall (knee) who were just the latest additions to the injury list, as well as Brandon Aiyuk (knee), Jacob Cowing (hamstring), Jordan Wakins (calf) and All-Pro tight-end George Kittle (hamstring), the 49ers would look to Kendrick Bourne who had only joined the team three weeks ago via free-agency and Demarcus Robinson who barely made his season debut with the team a week ago after serving a 3-game suspension to start the season. While Robinson didn't quite have the revenge game many including myself thought he would against his former team of the past two years, Bourne on the other hand turned back the clock and registered a career night with 10 receptions and 142 receiving yards. With San Francisco being the only team in the NFL ranked in the top 5 in total offense and total defense this season, they would flex both of those muscles in the first half on Thursday. 

Coming out guns blazing on both sides of the ball to open the game, the 49ers were absolutely dominant in the opening quarter, highlighted by an opening-drive touchdown that spanned 87-yards over 12-plays, capped off by a touchdown pass from Jones to backup tight-end Jake Tonges who again answered the call while filling in for the injured Kittle. After forcing a punt on L.A.'s first possession of the game, Kyle Shanahan's offense embarked on an even longer drive of 76-yards on 19-plays, eating up over 8-minutes in time of possession. Again, ending the drive with a touchdown, Jones threw a dart to running back Christian McCaffrey who scored from a yard out to give his team a 14-0 lead. Just when the Rams began to finally show some life on offense, the 49ers pounced on a fumbled pitch from L.A.'s quarterback Matt Stafford. The Rams would finally find the end zone before the half with a touchdown reception from Kyren Williams, but San Francisco would manage to add to their lead before halftime with an Eddy Pineiro field goal, making it 17-7 at the half. 

Opening the second half with the ball, the Rams would have an early opportunity to put a dent into San Francisco's lead, but their kicking woes would once again haunt them. Prior to Thursday night, the only loss suffered by the Rams this season came at the hands of the kicking team as kicker Joshua Karty had his potential game-winning field goal attempt blocked and returned by the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles in Week 3. Against the Niners, Karty would have another forgetful game as his 53-yard field goal attempt was missed wide right. Making matters worse, the Niners were able to add another Eddy Pineiro field goal on the other end to make it a 20-7 game. While San Francisco would continue to dominant in the time of possession battle, their inability to score a touchdown from the 1-yard line would allow the Rams to stick around. With touchdowns on each of their next two possessions, Matt Stafford and the Rams would do just that as Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams each hauled in touchdown receptions to help pull L.A. even. What was once a 20-7 game with 6:36 remaining in the third quarter, quickly turned into a 20-20 tie with a pending extra-point that would give the Rams a 21-20 lead. However, the Rams would be snakebitten again by kicker Joshua Kurty who this time had his PAT blocked by Jordan Elliott of the 49ers. 

With both teams exchanging punts after failing to move the chains, San Francisco took over from their own 2-yard line before moving the ball up the field and making it across midfield. But it was there where their drive would begin to stall as they were forced to settle for yet another field goal attempt. With his deepest attempt yet in a 49ers uniform, kicker Eddy Pineiro would nail the 59-yard field goal attempt, setting a new career-long and giving San Francisco a 23-20 lead with 2:57 remaining in the fourth quarter. It would also mark the second longest made field goal in 49ers franchise history (David Akers, 63-yards). After logging his 50th career game-winning drive a week earlier against the Colts, Rams QB Matt Stafford would have a chance to add another to his resume as L.A. took over and quickly began to march down the field. Already thin on the defensive-line, defensive tackle Kalia Davis (broken hand) and defensive-end Yetur Gross-Matos (hamstring) would have to leave Thursday's game with injuries. But that wouldn't stop another name on the defensive-line from stepping up big and making a game-saving play as rookie Alfred Collins turned in his best game yet at the pro level. With the Rams making it all the way to the 1-yard line, running back Kyren Williams would be met near the goal line by Collins who was able to punch the ball loose and recover his own forced fumble. 

While the Niners would take over pinned back at their own goal line with only 1:05 remaining in regulation, they would fail to convert a game-sealing first down and instead had to punt the ball back to the Rams who were able to successfully preserve clock by using all three of their timeouts. Taking over at midfield, the Rams were able to move the ball another 20 yards to setup Karty who was able to redeem himself a bit with a 48-yard field goal that would tie the score at 23-23 and send the game into overtime. With the Rams winning the coin-toss and electing to differ, the 49ers were given another gift from Karty who's kickoff fell short of the landing zone which resulted in a penalty and San Francisco taking over at the 40-yard line. Able to move the ball another 46 yards on strikes from Mac Jones, the 49ers eventually settled for a 41-yard field goal from Pineiro that skipped off the inner-post before splitting the uprights. Just enough to give the 49er fans in attendance and watching from home a mild heart-attack. With the Rams taking over possession with a chance to sneak away with a win, Stafford launched a deep pass on 2nd and 1 to a wide-open Tutu Atwell for a 38-yard gain that put the Rams in the red zone. But after failing to convert the first down on the next three plays, Rams head coach Sean McVay opted to go for it on a crucial 4th and 1 attempt from the San Francisco 11-yard line where running back Kyren Williams would be met just shy of the 1st down marker by a gang of 49er defenders including rookie safety Marquis Sigle who came up with the game-winning stop, sending the 49er sideline and the SoFi Stadium crowd into a frenzy. 

Pulling off the upset to improve to 4-1 on the season, San Francisco improved to 3-0 in the division after a dreadful 1-5 record against division foes a year ago and snapped their three-game skid to the Rams. With all five games this season decided by one score, Thursday marked the first game without a turnovers this season for San Francisco. And while they came up with two fumbles in the win, the defense is still in search of their first interception of the season. 49ers quarterback Mac Jones threw for 342 yards and 2 touchdowns, becoming just the 4th QB since 1950 to record a 3-0 record and pass for 800+ yards and 6+ touchdowns in his first three starts with a team (Matt Stafford 2021, Patrick Mahomes 2017-18, and Kurt Warner 1999). With his league-best third game this season with 275+ passing yards and a 65+ completion percentage, Jones also became just the 4th 49ers QB since 1950 to win his first 3 starts in franchise history (Y.A. Tittle, Jimmy Garoppolo, Brock Purdy). Elsewhere, running back Christian McCaffrey was unable to record a rushing touchdown yet again, but made his presence felt in other ways by registering another 139 yards from scrimmage, giving him 100+ scrimmage yards in each game this season. CMC becomes just the 6th player in NFL history to reach 11,000+ scrimmage yards and 80+ total touchdowns in their first 100 games. All other players to reach that feat before him are either Hall of Famers or are guaranteed to one day reach that honor (Jim Brown, Eric Dickerson, Emmitt Smith, Ladanian Tomlinson, and Adrian Peterson). Matt Stafford of the Rams also had a stellar outing in the loss, passing for 389 yards and 3 touchdowns. Receiver Puka Nacua logged another 10 catches for 85-yards and a touchdown, becoming the first player in NFL history with 50+ receptions in the first five games to a season. 

Week 6 Preview: The (4-1) 49ers will hit the road in Week 6 where they are undefeated up to this point with a record of 3-0 away from Levi's Stadium and will pay a visit to Tampa Bay to face off against Baker Mayfield and the (4-1) Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Leaders of the NFC South, Mayfield has the Bucs looking to run the table once again in the division. Coming off an impressive road victory over the Seahawks in Seattle, Mayfield has gotten the Bucs off to a tremendous start so far with the help of his newest toy and early Offensive Rookie of the Year front-runner Emeka Egbuka. The two have connected inside the end zone on five occasions already and will be one of the key storylines the 49er defense will have to keep close tabs on come Sunday. With San Francisco still yet to give up any points in the first quarter of a game this season, they'll try to keep that trend alive against this high-powered Bucs offense. While the 49ers have won all of their games by close margins with wins of 4, 5, 1 and 3 points, the Bucs actually have them beat as they're the first team in NFL history to win four games by 3 or fewer points in the first five games of a season. Of those four wins, three of them have come on the road.

And like San Francisco, Tampa Bay is winning games without some of their best players as receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, running back Bucky Irving and tackles Tristan Wirfs and Luke Goedeke have all missed time this season. After losses from both Philadelphia and Seattle on Sunday, the 49ers currently sit atop the NFC standings with a record of 4-1 and the only team in the conference with more than one division win under their belt. With a thrilling 23-20 win over Tampa Bay at home a season ago, there will likely be more fireworks when these two teams meet as both clubs try to stake their claim atop the NFC standings.

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